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22-year cycle in the frequency of aurora occurrence in XIX century: Latitudinal

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Article  in  Geomagnetism and Aeronomy · March 2017

DOI: 10.1134/S0016793217020116

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ISSN 0016-7932, Geomagnetism and Aeronomy, 2017, Vol. 57, No. 2, pp. 190–198. © Pleiades Publishing, Ltd., 2017.
Original Russian Text © N.G. Ptitsyna, M.I. Tyasto, B.A. Khrapov, 2017, published in Geomagnetizm i Aeronomiya, 2017, Vol. 57, No. 2, pp. 208–216.

22-Year Cycle in the Frequency of Aurora Occurrence in XIX Century:

Latitudinal Effects
N. G. Ptitsyna*, M. I. Tyasto, and B. A. Khrapov
St. Petersburg Branch, Pushkov Institute of Terrestrial Magnetism, Ionosphere, and Radio Wave Propagation,
Russian Academy of Sciences, St. Petersburg, Russia
*e-mail: nataliaptitsyna@ya.ru
Received March 3, 2016; in final form, April 29, 2016

Abstract⎯The 22-year variation in the frequency of aurora occurrence is found through an analysis of data
of the Russian network of meteorological stations from 1837–1909. This variation is obtained in a form of
asymmetry between even and odd solar cycles. We found that the nature of the 22-year variation depends on
the latitude of the observation station. The annual number N of midlatitude auroras (geomagnetic latitudes
Φ < 56°) for about three years at the end of the descending part of solar cycles is larger for the even cycles than
for the odd. For high-latitude auroras (Φ ≥ 56°), the pattern is opposite: at the descending part of the solar
cycle, N is larger in the odd cycles than in the even. For the high-latitude sector, asymmetry of the polar sun
cycles (the period between two magnetic field reversals) is clearly observed: an increased N is observed during
the whole odd polar cycle (which starts approximately at the maximum of the odd Schwabe cycle) as com-
pared to the even cycle. Extrapolation of the modern picture of alternation of the sign of the global solar mag-
netic field back in time leads to the conclusion that the most geoeffective polar cycles in cycles 8–14 were
those in which the polar magnetic field in the orthern hemisphere was negative.

DOI: 10.1134/S0016793217020116

1. INTRODUCTION fields for the equatorial region (the difference between

Auroras are closely associated with geomagnetic
activity. Geomagnetic disturbances have the follow-
ing main sources in interplanetary space and in the
Sun (Simon and Legrand, 1989; Gonzalez et al.,
1993; 1994; Tsurutani et al., 1992; 2006; Love, 2011;
Vásquez et al., 2014): (1) transient events, coronal
mass ejections, and (2) long-lived corotating high-
speed solar wind streams from coronal holes. The
mid- and low-latitude auroras may be driven, in turn,
by the first type of source, while high-latitudinal auro-
ras may be driven by the second (Liritzis and Pet-
ropoulos, 1987; Vásquez et al., 2014; Ptitsyna et al.,
2015).
Solar activity is characterized by periodic variations
of different time lengths. The most studied is the 11-
year Schwabe cycle in the numbers of the solar spots or
the Wolf numbers W (it is this cycle that is commonly
called the solar cycle). The most fundamental is the
doubled Schwabe cycle, about 22 years long. The 22-
year variation in polarity of the top solar spots was dis-
covered by Hale and colleagues at the beginning of the
XX century (Hale and Nicholson, 1925), and was later
related to the polarity reversal of solar large-scale
magnetic fields (Babcock, 1961). It is so-called the
Hale cycle that manifests itself in both the polarity of
the magnetic fields of spots and polarity of polar mag-
netic fields. The sign of the imbalance of magnetic
the magnetic flux of positive and negative fields)
maintained for 11 years from one polar field inversion
to the other (Vernova et al., 2014). The global Sun’s
magnetic field returns to the same state through two
full 11-year cycles. It should be noted that the 22-year
variation cannot be detected by direct statistical anal-
ysis of solar data, such as the existing long series of
Wolf numbers; it is detected mainly in the form of
asymmetry in the 11-year cycles. For example, a
22-year variation was detected in the form of the
Gnevyshev-Ohl rule: the maximum Wolf number W
in the odd cycle is greater than the value W at the max-
imum of the previous even cycle (Gnevyshev and Ohl,
1948). In (Makarov et al., 2002), a 22-year variation in
the area of the Sun’s polar zone occupied by an uni-
polar magnetic field was found, which manifests itself
in the increase and decrease of the area in successive
Schwabe cycles. A 22-year mode is also observed in
variations of rotation of large-scale magnetic fields
and the solar corona at lower latitudes, which mani-
fests itself in a faster rotation in the maxima of 11-year
even cycles than in the maxima of odd cycles (Tlatov,
2006a, 2006b).
The solar magnetic field can be approximated by an
inclined dipole, which is distorted by higher harmon-
ics (hexapole and quadrupole) (Bravo and Gonzalez-
Esparza, 2000). The orientation and magnitude of the

190
 22-YEAR CYCLE IN THE FREQUENCY OF AURORA OCCURRENCE
R2 = 0.0048
100
80
N(Φ ≥ 56°)
60
40
20
0 25 50
N(Φ < 56°)
Fig. 1. Mutual correlation of frequency of auroras in mid-
and high-latitude segments.
dipole, as well as the contribution of higher harmon-
ics, vary over time. Their cyclic variation is similar to
the 11-year variation of solar activity but is shifted in
time. The polarity variation at the poles takes place
near the maximum of the solar cycle. The interval
between two changes of polarity (approximately
between the two maxima) is called a dipole or polar
cycle (Legrand and Simon, 1991). Although the polar
cycle and solar activity cycle (the Schwabe cycle) are
closely related and overlap each other in space and
time; in many cases, it is useful to divide these cycles
in the time series of solar–terrestrial parameters, to
understand what dominates in the studied processes,
the polarity of the groups of spots (sunspot cycle) or
the orientation of the main dipole (polar cycle).
It is known that the large-scale structure of the
heliospheric magnetic field depends mainly on the
solar dipole direction, i.e., on the polar cycle. When
the polarity of the global solar magnetic field is posi-
tive in the northern hemisphere, the interplanetary
magnetic field is directed outward from the Sun over
the heliospheric current sheet and towards the sun
beneath the sheet. Obviously, the high-speed streams
of the solar wind from the polar coronal holes are con-
trolled by polar cycle; however, coronal mass ejections
may also depend on the orientation of the solar dipole
(Bothmer and Rust, 1997; Bothmer and Schwenn,
1998; Mulligan et al., 1998; 2000).
The Hale cycle was also discovered in geomagnetic
activity and other geophysical parameters in the form
of asymmetry of 11-year cycles of their activity (Cher-
nosky, 1966; Russell, 1974; Val’chuk et al., 1978;
Cliver et al, 1996; Nagovitsyn et al., 2009; Shnirman
et al., 2009; Libin et al., 2012).
The auroral activity of the Hale cycle was not really
studied. We can only note the results of (Zaretskii,
1980). According to the observations of auroras in
Norway, Denmark, Germany, the United States, as
GEOMAGNETISM AND AERONOMY Vol. 57 No. 2
191
well as the Yakutsk network of observation stations,
the author calculated the difference in the frequency
of auroral occurrence in the odd/even and even/odd
minima. On average, their signs turned out to be
uncertain.
In our previous work (Ptitsyna et al., 2015), indica-
tions of the existence of a 22-year cycle in the occur-
rence of auroras registered in Russia in 1837–1900 at a
wide range of latitudes are obtained. The main objec-
tives of this study were (1) to extend the studied series
by one cycle of solar activity; (2) to examine the
22-year mode separately for mid- and high-latitude
segments, and to specify its features at different lati-
tudes; (3) to relate these features to sources on the Sun
and in the heliosphere. One of the new aspects of our
research is to study the observational data on auroras
with respect to the dipole cycle of the Sun.
2. DATA
We supplemented the catalog (Ptitsyna et al., 2015)
with pre-1909 auroral observations. As a result, the
obtained catalog includes single-appearance auroras
occurring in 1837–1909 at 141 stations located both in
the European and Asian parts of Russia at a wide range
of latitudes and longitudes. It contains ~3000 events
(N). As is common practice in the preparation of
aurora catalogs (Angot, 1896; Křivský and Pejml,
1985; Silverman, 1992; Vásquez et al., 2014), the fre-
quency N of auroras was calculated as the number of
days when the phenomenon was observed and
summed over the year, regardless of the number of sta-
tions where the event was recorded. The weather con-
ditions are not taken into account, which may lead to
a somewhat underestimated value of N (Tromholt,
1881; Ptitsyna et al., 2015).
We divided the data array into mid- and high-lati-
tude segments at the geomagnetic latitude Φ = 56°
(average latitude of St. Petersburg’s observatories).
The table shows the frequency N of auroras in the mid-
and high-latitude segments in the period of 1837–
1909. N (Φ ≥ 56°) accounts for auroras recorded only
in the high-latitude stations.
Figure 1 shows a cross-correlation of auroras N in
the mid- and high-latitude segments. It can be seen
that the mid- and high-latitude auroras are weakly
correlated, i.e., the data are practically independent.
Figure 2 shows the frequency of aurora occurrence at
different latitudes and the number of sunspots W. It is
seen that a there is a significant increase in N t high lat-
itudes in 1837–1909. The analysis presented in our
paper (Ptitsyna et al., 2015) for the period of 1837–
1900 showed that, despite the contribution that may
be caused by the new high-latitude stations appearing
at the end of the XIX century, the increase in N in the
high latitudes is probably real. A detailed study of this
growing trend is presented in (Ptitsyna et al., 2015).
2017
192 PTITSYNA et al.

3. VARIATION OF N IN MINIMUM N Φ < 56°

AND MAXIMUM OF SOLAR ACTIVITY 50

In this section we analyze the behavior of the 25

annual number N observed at different latitudes in the
maxima and minima of solar activity cycles. In order 0

1833
1838
1843
1848
1853
1858
1863
1868
1873
1878
1883
1888
1893
1898
1903
1908
to eliminate the effect of unequal cycles, the data were
normalized to the maximum value of W for each cycle.
The minima between cycles n and n + 1 are denoted as Year
n + 1. The upper panel of Fig. 3 shows the numbers W N Φ ≥ 56°
and normalized annual numbers of auroras N/W in 100
the high-latitude segment in the maxima (Fig. 3, left
panel) and minima (Fig. 3, right panel) of solar cycles.
50
The bottom two panels of Fig. 3 show similar N/W
curves for the midlatitudinal segment.
First, it should be noted that W curves satisfy the 0

1833
1838
1843
1848
1853
1858
1863
1868
1873
1878
1883
1888
1893
1898
1903
1908
known Gnevyshev-Ohl rule: the number W in the
maxima of odd cycles is larger than in the maxima of
even cycles. The only exception is the maximum of the Year
even 8th cycle, where W is larger than in the subse- W
quent odd cycle. In addition, it is clear that this rule is 150
also true for minima. 100
Figure 3 shows that the characteristic pattern of 50
asymmetry between even and odd cycles is clearly 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
observed for the high-latitude auroral activity at the 0 1833
1838
1843
1848
1853
1858
1863
1868
1873
1878
1883
1888
1893
1898
1903
1908
minima of solar activity. For the normalized number
of high-latitude auroras in cycle lows, there is a clear Year
difference between odd/even and even/odd pair of
cycles: at the minimum between an odd and even Fig. 2. Wolf numbers W and frequency of auroras N in the
cycle, N/W is higher than in the minimum between an mid- and high-latitude segments in 1837–1909.
even and odd cycle. That is, there is a 22-year varia-
tion. N/W is systematically growing in the maxima of
cycles in high-latitude segment. For the midlatitude from about the maximum of cycle n to the maximum
segment, most striking feature is a big N/W leap (Fig. 3, of cycle n + 1, where there is a change in the dominant
bottom panels) at the maximum of 12th cycle and sub- polarity of the magnetic field. An even polar cycle is
sequent minimum, which is designated by the number one for which n is even, and an odd cycle is one for
13; this jump in the frequency of auroras occurrence in which n is odd. Each cycle is divided into ten equal
1888–1889 biennium is also seen in Fig. 2 (upper time intervals. A phase of the cycle is defined as F =
panel). In minima of cycles, the difference in N/W (t – tmin 1)/(tmin 2 – tmin 1), where t is the current year,
between odd/even and even/odd pairs of cycles is tmin 1 and tmin 2 are years of successive minima. The
nearly not observable. It is also absent for the maxima method of linear interpolation was used upon reduc-
of the cycles. Thus, a clear 22-year variation in the tion of the number of auroras to the phase of solar
normalized number of auroras N/W is observed only cycle. The dependence on phase rather than on time
for the high-latitude segment in the form of asymme- allows one to reduce the effect of different lengths of
try between even-odd and odd-even lows. solar cycles. The maximum of the Schwabe cycle falls
on F = 0.4, and the minimum falls on F = 0. Inversion
of the magnetic field occurs one to two years after the
4. THE SCHWABE CYCLE AND POLAR CYCLE: cycle maximum (Webb et al., 1984; Makarov and Siv-
DEPENDENCE OF THE VARIATIONS araman, 1989); we assume that the polar cycle begins
ON THE PARITY OF THE CYCLE at F = 0.5.
This section presents the results of analysis of Figure 4 shows the difference in the behavior of W
changes in auroral activity in the Schwabe and polar in the even and odd cycles during the Schwabe cycle
cycles separately for the midlatitude and high-latitude and polar cycle. The left panel shows that W curves
sectors. For this analysis, the superposed epoch practically coincide on the descending branch of the
method was used to build averaged curves of W and N Schwabe cycle, while, on the ascending branch of the
dependencies on the phase F of the solar activity cycle. curve, W in the odd cycle is higher than in the even
The analysis was conducted separately for the even (8, cycle (according to the Gnevyshev-Ohl rule). It is
10, 12, 14) and odd (9, 11, 13) Schwabe cycles and for clear from the right panel that, if the descending
even and odd polar cycles. A polar cycle is measured branch of the polar cycle shows the same pattern as on

GEOMAGNETISM AND AERONOMY Vol. 57 No. 2 2017

 22-YEAR CYCLE IN THE FREQUENCY OF AURORA OCCURRENCE 193

W
N/W Min Φ ≥ 56° Max Φ ≥ 56° N/W
W
15 140 1.5
105
10 1.0
70
5 0.5
35
0 0 0
9 10 11 12 13 14 9 10 11 12 13 14
Number of the solar cycle Number of the solar cycle
Max Φ < 56°
Min Φ < 56° N/W
W N/W 140 W 0.50
15 4
3 105
10
2 70 0.25
5 35
1
0 0 0 0
9 10 11 12 13 14 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
Number of the solar cycle Number of the solar cycle

Fig. 3. Wolf numbers W (open circles) and normalized frequency of auroras N/W in minima and maxima of the Schwabe cycles
for different latitudes.

Schwabe cycle Polar cycle

W W
100 100

50 50

0 0
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 0.5 0.7 0.9 0.1 0.3
Phase of the solar cycle Phase of the solar cycle

Fig. 4. Wolf numbers W averaged over all Schwabe and polar cycles (1837–1909). Left panel: W in even (gray line) and odd (black
line) Schwabe cycles. Right panel: W in even (gray line) and odd (black line) polar cycles.

the left panel, then W in the ascending branch of the
even polar cycle is higher than in the odd cycle. This is
because the polar cycle consists of two halves of solar
activity cycles having different numbering, i.e., the
second half of an even polar cycle is the first half of an
odd Schwabe cycle.
Figure 5 shows the annual number of auroras in the
odd and even solar cycles. A clear asymmetry of cycles
can be seen in the left panel of Fig. 5 for the high-lati-
tude sector: the number N of auroras in the first half of
cycle in the even cycles is larger than in the odd ones,
while for the second half of the cycle the situation is
opposite. Thus, Fig. 5 (left panel) indicates the pres-
ence of a 22-year variation in the frequency of high-
latitude auroras. At midlatitudes, there is a more com-
plicated picture for N in the odd and even solar cycles
(Fig. 5, right panel) for most the cycle. Only at the end
of the second half of a cycle (F = 0.8; 0.9) is there a
substantial excess of auroras in the even cycles as com-
pared to the odd. This result is in agreement with the
known fact that the geomagnetic activity (according to
the geomagnetic indices) in the second half of an even
solar cycle is higher than in the second half of an odd
cycle (Chernosky, 1966; Russell, 1973; Feldshtein
et al., 1979).
Figure 6 (left panel) shows for the high-latitude
sector that the curve N for an odd polar cycle (starting
at the maximum of the odd Schwabe cycle) is higher
than for an even polar cycle. A generalized pattern is
visible in a comparison of the curves of the polynomial
trend. The difference between the values in the even
and odd polar cycle is the highest for descending
branch (F = 0.8) and at the beginning of recovery
(F = 0.1), when it is about 400% and 200% respec-
tively. At the minimum of the cycle (F = 0), the differ-
ence is about 60%.

GEOMAGNETISM AND AERONOMY Vol. 57 No. 2 2017

194 PTITSYNA et al.

Φ ≥ 56° Φ ≥ 56°'
150 N 150 N

100 100

50 50

0 0
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0
Phase of Schwabe cycle Phase of Schwabe cycle

Fig. 5. Frequency of auroras N averaged over the entire Schwabe cycle in 1837–1909. Left panel: N in high-latitude sector in even
(gray line) and odd (black line) Schwabe cycles. Right panel: the same for midlatitude sector.

N Полярный цикл, Φ ≥ 56° N Полярный цикл, Φ < 56°

140 140
120 120
100 100
80 80
60 60
40 40
20 20
0 0
0.5 0.7 0.9 0.1 0.3 0.5 0.7 0.9 0.1 0.3
Фаза цикла Швабе Фаза цикла Швабе

Fig. 6. Annual number of auroras N in the averaged even and odd polar cycle. Left panel: geomagnetic latitudes Φ ≥ 56°. Right
panel: geomagnetic latitudes Φ < 56°. The averaging was performed over all cycles in 1837–1909. Odd polar cycle: N (black line),
trend (solid thin line). Even polar cycle: N (gray line), trend (dashed line).

For the midlatitude sector (Fig. 6, right panel), for
three years near the minima, there is an excess of N in
the even cycles compared to the odd cycles; the excess
is about 200%. Thus, a 22-year variation in auroras
occurrence is observed in our set of data, but the ratio
of curves N is opposite for the midlatitude and high-
latitude sectors.
5. DISCUSSION
The mechanism of 22-year variation in geomag-
netic activity is known. The most common view is that
this variation is mainly the result of a combination of
the Russell-McPherron effect and the Rosenberg-
Coleman effect of polarity (Rosenberg and Coleman,
1969; Russsel, 1973; 1974; Russell and McPherron,
1973; Svalgaard, 1977). As a result of the combined
impact of these effects, the heliospheric magnetic field
and magnetosphere turned out to be linked in various
ways for periods of different mutual position of solar
and terrestrial dipoles (parallel or antiparallel). This is
purely a geometrical mechanism.
A competing hypothesis could be the presence of
an internal source of the Sun, which would change
with a period of 22 years. A 22-year variation of recur-
rent high-speed streams of the solar wind detected in
(Cliver et al., 1996) is associated with possible changes
of the global solar magnetic field from cycle to cycle.
Indeed, such evidence was found. Changes in the
angle of inclination of the heliospheric current layer
from 70° to 30°, which are obtained from the analysis
of the coronal magnetic field (Hoeksema et al., 1983;
Hoeksema, 1989), occur more slowly in cycle 21 com-
pared to cycle 22 (Cliver et al., 1996). The same asym-
metry is observed in the behavior of the neutral line in
the maxima of the cycles 19 and 20 (Cliver et al.,
1996). A 22-year variation in the area of the polar
zone of the Sun taken by the unipolar magnetic field
was found in a longer database (1870–2000) (Makarov
et al., 2002). These results can be interpreted as evi-
dence of the existence of an internal source of 22-year
mode, as opposed to a purely geometric Russell-
McPherron mechanism. The global magnetic field of
the Sun is transferred by solar plasma into interplane-
tary space to the Earth’s orbit; it takes part in the for-
mation of the heliospheric current sheet and thereby
controls the geomagnetic activity. Changes in the
parameters of the polar magnetic field from one cycle
to another, depending on their parity, should generate
a 22-year variation of the solar wind in the plane of the
ecliptic, which is reflected in geomagnetic activity. At
the same time, it can be expected that this variation

GEOMAGNETISM AND AERONOMY Vol. 57 No. 2 2017

 22-YEAR CYCLE IN THE FREQUENCY OF AURORA OCCURRENCE 195

Frequency of auroras N in 1837–1909 in different latitudinal segments

Year Φ < 56° N Φ ≥ 56° N Year Φ < 56° N Φ ≥ 56° N Year Φ < 56° N Φ ≥ 56° N
1837 16 0 1862 6 4 1887 26 16
1838 22 1 1863 1 7 1888 29 29
1839 10 17 1864 1 4 1889 24 27
1840 5 11 1865 4 5 1890 8 22
1841 4 3 1866 4 32 1891 6 52
1842 0 16 1867 0 15 1892 21 32
1843 1 6 1868 1 12 1893 21 73
1844 1 7 1869 10 27 1894 19 41
1845 1 6 1870 43 33 1895 17 57
1846 2 8 1871 31 25 1896 10 84
1847 9 12 1872 31 29 1897 9 73
1848 19 1 1873 11 53 1898 14 69
1849 3 4 1874 11 17 1899 2 74
1850 3 11 1875 28 14 1900 1 46
1851 12 10 1876 2 20 1901 8 37
1852 15 25 1877 11 8 1902 1 84
1853 14 7 1878 1 29 1903 4 38
1854 5 10 1879 8 29 1904 7 59
1855 2 8 1880 16 14 1905 3 63
1856 1 12 1881 19 25 1906 5 76
1857 6 3 1882 34 26 1907 15 66
1858 7 24 1883 30 28 1908 5 61
1859 12 23 1884 5 41 1909 14 65
1860 17 13 1885 2 17
1861 3 7 1886 7 22

will be most clearly observed in the geomagnetic activ-
ity controlled by high-speed streams of the solar wind
from coronal holes. Indeed, the 22-year mode is well
observed in the 27-day variation of geomagnetic indi-
ces (аа, Ap) in the form of alternation of its lower and
higher amplitude in successive cycles (Cliver et al.,
1996; Apostolov et al., 2004; Shnirman et al., 2009).
We found (Figs. 5 and 6) that the 22-year periodic-
ity has a different character for auroras observed at dif-
ferent latitudes, which is inconsistent with the hypoth-
esis of a single, common mechanism for a 22-year
variation dependent only on the relative position of the
Sun and the Earth. Thus, our results confirm the pres-
ence of an internal solar power that contributes to the
22-year variation of geomagnetic activity.
Figure 6 demonstrates the excess of N for high-lat-
itude auroras in the odd polar cycles compared to the
even. Since high-latitude auroras are caused by high-
speed streams from coronal holes, our results can be
interpreted as evidence that coronal holes in theodd
polar cycle were more numerous and/or more vigor-
ous in 1837–1909, and, accordingly, that high-speed
streams were more geoeffective.
In a recent paper (Abunina et al., 2015), 300 coro-
nal holes were studied; they were observed in the
2002–2013 biennium. We found that the coronal holes
of the northern hemisphere with negative polarity and
coronal holes of the southern hemisphere with a posi-
tive polarity are more geoeffective (higher Kp index of
geomagnetic activity). The results (Abunina et al.,
2015) on the polarity of the solar magnetic fields, cor-
onal holes, and geomagnetic disturbances were
obtained from spacecraft measurements in the last
decade. Such parameters were not measured in the
nineteenth century. Direct measurement data on the
magnetic fields of the Sun and their repolarization are
obtained only in the twentieth century. Extrapolating
backward current data on the alternating polarity of
the solar magnetic field (Makarov and Tlatov, 2000),
we find in 1837–1909 (8–14th Schwabe cycles) that
negative polarity of the solar magnetic fields was
observed in the northern hemisphere in the odd polar
cycles (see table).
Thus, it follows from Fig. 6 that a higher N, i.e.,
higher geoeffectiveness, is observed for odd cycles,
i.e., when the polarity of the Sun’s polar regions in the

GEOMAGNETISM AND AERONOMY Vol. 57 No. 2 2017

196 PTITSYNA et al.
northern hemisphere is negative. This result is consis-
tent with the result of (Abunina et al., 2015), which
found that coronal holes with a negative polarity of the
magnetic field (for the northern hemisphere) are the
most geoeffective. This can be explained by the fact
that the polar cap boundary change with a 22-year
interval in such a way that area of the polar cap in the
northern hemisphere in odd polar cycle is larger than
in even cycle (Makarov et al., 2002).
Generally speaking, one can not a priori assume
that the solar-terrestrial processes in earlier eras pro-
ceeded the in same way as in the modern era. The
characteristics of solar magnetic fields and solar–ter-
restrial processes have being changing over time
(Lockwood et al., 1999; Love, 2011; Du, 2011; Echer
et al., 2004). For example, it was shown in (Lockwood
et al., 1999) that the overall flux of the solar magnetic
field has increased by 2.3 times since 1901, which the
authors associated with chaotic changes in the
dynamo that generates the magnetic field of the sun.
Geomagnetic activity (aa index) also began increasing
at the end of the XIX century (since 1868); however,
this trend cannot be assumed to be linear or mono-
tonic (Love, 2011). In the XX century, starting with
cycle 14, geomagnetic activity lags behind solar activ-
ity, but this was not observed earlier in cycles 8–13
(Love, 2011; Ptitsyna et al., 2015). It is indicated in
(Shirman et al., 2009) that the evolution of the 22-year
variation underwent a regime change in 1912, when
the 22-year mode (in a 27-day spectral component)
vanishes for sunspots and appears in the aa index. In
this regard, Love (2011) warns against extrapolating
the solar–terrestrial relations forward or backward.
However, in our case, a backward extrapolation of
modern data on alternation of the polarity of the polar
magnetic field of the Sun and geoeffectiveness of this
field led to correct results. This may indicate that the
properties of the internal power of the 22-year period-
icity of the solar polar magnetic field remained
unchanged over the past 180 years.
6. CONCLUSIONS
We have expanded the catalog of auroras according
to data from the Russian network of meteorological
observatories (Ptitsyna et al., 2015) due to the inclu-
sion of data up to 1909. The following results were
obtained as a result of data analysis for the 1837–1909
biennium (8–14th cycles of solar activity):
1. For the first time (to our knowledge), a 22-year
variation is identified in the frequency of aurora
occurrence, and it is found that the character of this
variation depends on the latitude of the observation
station.
2. The annual number of midlatitude auroras N
(geomagnetic latitudes Φ < 56°) for about three years
at the end of the descending branch of solar cycle in
the even cycles is larger than in the odd ones.
GEOMAGNETISM AND AERONOMY
3. The frequency N of auroras in the high-latitude
sector (Φ ≥ 56°) demonstrates the opposite behavior:
in the second half of solar activity cycles (the Schwabe
cycle), N in the odd cycles is larger than in the even
ones, while the picture is the opposite for the first half
of the cycles.
4. For the normalized annual number N/W of
high-latitude auroras, there is a clear difference at the
minima of the Schwabe cycles in pairs of cycles
odd/even: N/W at the minimum between odd and
even cycles is higher than at the minimum between
even and odd cycles.
5. For high-latitude auroras, N is higher in most
odd polar cycles than in even cycles. Thus, the period
between the maximum of odd Schwabe cycle and the
next maximum is the most geoeffective.
6. For the considered period of time (1937–1909),
the most geoeffective polar cycles were those in which
the polar magnetic field in the northern hemisphere
was negative.
The results indicate that internal solar power con-
tributes to the generation of the 22-year variations in
geomagnetic activity, as opposed to the explanation of
this variation that only refers to the Russell-Makfer-
rona mechanism, which is associated with the slope of
the solar equator to the ecliptic plane. The increased
geoeffectiveness of odd polar cycles, which in our case
implies an increased frequency of high-latitude auro-
ras, can be caused by the increase in these periods of
the area of the polar zone occupied by the magnetic
field of one polarity. Apparently, the properties of the
source of the 22-year periodicity in the global solar
magnetic field remained unchanged for the past 180
years. The nature of the internal mechanism of this
variation is currently unclear and requires further
investigation.
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